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Click on a topic:

• What Do Psychologists Do?
• A Word About Our Graduates
• The Psychology Faculty
• Advantages of a B.A. in Psychology from CSS
• The "Coherent Curriculum"
  • Component A:  Course Requirements and Options
  • Component B:  Cocurricular Activities
  • Component C:  Career Development
• Special Features of Our Program
• A Typical 4-Year Course Sequence

For additional details go to:

• The Psychology Undergraduate Student Handbook.

Go back to:

• Psychology Department Home Page

What Do Psychologists Do?

The subject matter of psychology is the behavior and experience of human beings and other organisms.  While some psychologists are engaged in research to further our under-standing of behavior, many are involved in applying the principles developed in the laboratory and field studies to human problems.  As the complexity of society increases, psychological knowledge takes on a more and more important role - in courts, in classrooms, in legislatures, in prisons, in boardrooms, and behind sales counters, in clinics, and in hospitals.

Because of the growing relevance of psychology, students planning to enter professions such as medicine, law, management, social work, education, speech pathology, or counseling often elect a major or minor in psychology.

Those who go on to become professional psychologists work in a variety of settings.  A recent survey gave the following proportions for major career tracks of psychologists:  The mental health field, including private practice, hospitals, clinics, counseling centers, and guidance centers accounts for 44 percent.  Twenty-nine percent are involved in teaching and research at the college level, while 15 percent are involved in elementary and high schools.  Thirteen percent work in business or government.

Developmental psychologists study patterns of change from infancy through old age, including physical, cognitive, social, and moral development. Clinical psychologists generally focus on abnormal behavior in an effort to understand, diagnose, and change such behavior.  Counseling psychologists also treat abnormal behavior but usually focus on
normal problems of living (e.g., marriage and educational counseling). Industrial psychologists usually work for a business enterprise applying psychological knowledge to such areas as personnel policies, working conditions, production efficiency, and decision making.

Experimental psychologists use scientific methods to carry out experiments designed to develop a basic understanding of such processes as learning, memory, motivation, sensation, and perception in human beings and lower animals.  Physiological and comparative psychologists study the contributions of biological factors – such as heredity, the sensory and nervous system, drugs, and species differences – to various kinds of behavior.  Social psychologists use a variety of scientific methods to study the behavior of people in social situations, from couples and small groups to crowds.  The emerging field of health psychology uses psychological principles in health maintenance.

This list provides a good overview, but keep in mind that the field is constantly growing as new research is completed and as new ways to apply psychological knowledge are discovered.

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A Word About Our Graduates

Dan Clay (‘89) completed a Ph.D. in Counseling at the University of Missouri-Columbia and is now on the faculty of the Department of Psychological and Quantitative Foundations at the University of Iowa.

Jill Eichenwald (’89) is an attorney with the Public Defender’s office in Duluth.

Chris Braun (‘90) joined Student Support Services at Vermillion Community College in Ely after completing a M.Ed. in Counseling at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

Gerald Esala (‘91), child protection social worker in Ashland County, Wisconsin.

Mary Alice Carlson ('93) graduated with a Master's degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Minnesota-Duluth in 1995.  She is an adjunct instructor for the Psychology Department at the College of St. Scholastica.

Kris Schultz (‘93), Traumatic Brain Injury Specialist for head-injured adults at Residential Services, Inc.

Kathleen Chapman (‘95), coordinator of the Young Parent Program for Lutheran Social Services, Duluth.

Holly Koski (‘95) graduated from law school at Hamline University.

Stephanie Charon (‘96) enrolled in the Psychology Doctorate Program at the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN.

Jacob Fisher (‘96) enrolled in the master’s program for Family Counseling at the University of Wisconsin-Stout.

Michael Menz (‘96), Account Representative for the Temple-Inland Forest Products Corporation in Texas with his own territory in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Deb Oswald (‘96) enrolled in the doctoral program in Applied Experimental Psychology at St. Louis University.

Julie Vincent (‘96), Assistant Director of Safe Transitions, a home in Cloquet for the chronically mentally ill.  She is also enrolled in the master’s program for counseling at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

Charlotte Hansen (‘96), Contract Specialist overseeing the Meals on Wheels and Senior Dining programs at Arrowhead Regional Development Commission.

Ramonica Borich (‘97) is employed as Qualified Mental Retardation Professional at Residential Services, Incorporated, and is enrolled in the Master’s program in Counseling at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

Jeffrey Grebinoski (‘97) enrolled in the industrial/ organizational psychology master’s program at Southwest Missouri State University.

Jennifer Mueller (’98) is in the clinical psychology doctoral program at the University of North Dakota.

Nancy Pexa (’00) enrolled in the general psychology master’s program at Iowa State University.

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The Psychology Faculty

Darryl Dietrich, Ph.D., Syracuse University, professor and department chair.  He is a developmental psychologist with research interests in memory, religious belief, and the family bed.  His most recent scholarly activities include (a) a presentation on parenting styles at a conference on children that he helped organize in Russia, (b) a research report at the Gerontological Society of America on memory workshops for older adults, and (c) authoring test item and study guide books for two widely used textbooks on developmental psychology.

Angela Rosenberg Hauger, Ph.D., Washington University, associate professor, licensed psychologist, and coordinator of the Gerontology Program.  Dr. Rosenberg is trained as a teacher, researcher, and clinician with specialties in clinical psychology and geropsychology.  She teaches courses such as abnormal psychology, research methods, psychological aspects of aging, and mental health and aging.  She enjoys mentoring student research and consulting with community agencies about aging-related topics.

Gerald Henkel-Johnson, Psy.D., University of St. Thomas, associate professor and coordinator of the Humans Services Concentration.  He is a counseling psychologist working primarily with adults.  Currently his focus is on older adults in nursing home settings and incarcerated individuals in state and federal prisons.  He teaches counseling, organizational behavior, biological psychology, group dynamics, health psychology, and behavior management.

Robert Hensley, Ph.D.,Iowa State University, assistant professor. Dr. Hensley comes to The College of Saint Scholastica from Mansfield University of Pennsylvania, joining the Psychology Department faculty in August 2007. His research interest is in human relationships, especially how college students adapt to ended relationships. He is also interested in studying close relationships in late adulthood, as well as predictors of mortality in the oldest old. He teaches general psychology and lifespan developmental psychology.

Andrine Lemieux, Ph.D.,University of Wisconsin, Madison, assistant professor. She is a licensed psychologist specializing in neuropsychology and has worked primarily with adults who have suffered brain injury due to disease, trauma, or toxicity. Her current research focus is within the area of neuroimmunology, which is the study of how immune cell products might affect cognition, emotion and behavior. She currently teaches counseling, health psychology, developmental psychology, statistics, and research methods.

Chandra Mehrotra, Ph.D., Ohio State University, professor and Dean of Special Projects.  His specialties are in the areas of statistics, research methodology, psychological measurement, and program evaluation.  His recent work has focused on strengthening teaching and learning through faculty development.  In addition he continues to provide assessment-related consultation both within and outside the College.  He is the co-author of a book on aging and diversity.

Debra S. Schroeder, Ph.D., Bowling Green State University, associate professor.  She is a social psychologist who teaches courses in general psychology, social psychology, research methods, psychology of gender, and statistics.  Her recent research endeavors have included: (a) facilitation of a student research group that developed, collected data on, analyzed, and presented the results of a measure of the quality of undergraduate advising; (b) publication of two articles on the role of gender in major professor-graduate student mentoring; and (c) evaluation of a grant obtained through Student Diversity Services.

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Advantages of a B.A in Psychology from St. Scholastica

In addition, our courses provide an excellent educational background for a variety of career choices (see “A Word About Our Graduates” section for career choices of recent graduates of our program).  By combining the psychology major with another field of study, for example, the student may increase employment possibilities and be better prepared to undertake graduate study in other fields.  Secondary education, management, and English are common double majors with psychology.  A minor in psychology can strengthen the background of students majoring in other fields.

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The "Coherent Curriculum"

Component A: Course Requirements and Options

Further customization of the major occurs in one of the required courses, the Directed Applied Project in Psychology (DAPP).  The DAPP takes students outside the classroom during the junior or senior year, where they become involved in half-time employment in the community.  During the DAPP, students get the chance to apply what they learned in the classroom to real-life problems.  Popular placements include work with mental health patients, apprenticeships in residential child treatment programs, and research assistantships.  Field placements have been very valuable to our psychology majors, giving them needed exposure before applying for jobs or graduate schools; it is not unusual for volunteer placements to develop into jobs.  For freshman and sophomores, less extensive volunteer placements are encouraged to help in exploring career interests.

A Human Services Concentration (HSC) within the psychology major is available for students who wish to focus their preparation toward applied services following the B.A., as well as for graduate studies.  Choosing the HSC during the spring semester of the sophomore year will make it possible to complete the requirements within the usual four years.  Careful planning also will allow psychology majors interested in working with older adults to fulfill the requirements for the Gerontology Certificate and/or minor at St. Scholastica.

Component B:  Cocurricular Activities

Component C:  Career Development

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Special Features of Our Program

The three components of the major – courses, cocurricular activities, and career development – are structured to allow for a student experience that is well-rounded.  The course sequence allows for gradual mastery of material, cocurricular activities encourage socializing with professionals and students in the field, and career development activities foster preparation for the future.

2.  Strong emphasis on life span developmental psychology:

Helping professions, such as counseling, nursing, social work, and physical therapy, rely on knowledge of normal development and behavior emphasized in our program--to identify dysfunction, restore normal functioning, or help with chronic problems.

3.  Small class size:

The largest psychology classes have approximately 40-60 students, but most have far fewer, and some have as few as ten.

4.  Opportunity to focus on individual interests:

For example, while those interested in pursuing careers in human services may choose the Human Services Concentration within the psychology major, those wanting to work with older individuals may opt for the Gerontology Certificate program or Gerontology Minor.  Those who wish to pursue graduate work are supported in activities that enhance graduate school applications.

5.  Strong emphasis on research and evaluation:

Wherever you work, you are likely to be asked to make decisions based on research.  For example, you might be asked to determine whether a program should be continued based on research on its effectiveness.  Our program provides the basic skills you will need to read the research of others and do your own research.

6. Opportunities to receive mentoring:

Faculty with background in both research and applied fields are available to work closely with students in progressing through the major.  Mentoring can be received in the form of paid and volunteer research and teaching assistantships, research groups, independent studies, and formal and informal career advising.

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PSY ELECTIVES:   Ecological Psychology;   Psychology of Giftedness;   Group Dynamics;   Behavior Management;   Organizational Behavior;   Psychology of Gender;   Introduction to Counseling;   Health Psychology;   Mental Health and Aging;   Applied Psychology;   Program Evaluation;   Psychosocial Aspects of Aging;   Independent Study, Field Work, or Research.

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